


knowing me, knowing you

by nightsickness



Category: Cobra Starship, Fall Out Boy, My Chemical Romance, Panic! at the Disco, Twenty One Pilots
Genre: Alternate Universe - High School, Coming Out, Developing Relationship, Falling In Love, Fear of Rejection, Friendship/Love, Happy Ending, Homophobia, I Don't Even Know, M/M, Minor Violence, Panic Attacks, Tyler Gets Hit
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-10-29
Updated: 2015-01-27
Packaged: 2018-02-23 04:16:37
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 4,721
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2533850
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/nightsickness/pseuds/nightsickness
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The first time Josh saw Tyler, he was fifteen.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi, hey there, hope you enjoy this. It's kind of my first Twenty One Pilots fanfiction, so, yeah. I don't really know where I'm going with this.
> 
> Title is from the song by ABBA.

The first time Josh saw Tyler, he was fifteen.

His hair was his natural color – boring and brunette. His eyes were too small for his face and he was very short for his age. He was also straight.

Josh was in Walmart with his mom when he laid eyes on Tyler Joseph for the very first time. Tyler was with his own mom, and he was looking at a Wilson basketball. His mom seemed to be trying to pull him along, but Tyler was very clearly adamant about the fact that he wanted the ball. After moments of incessant arguing, he sighed and gave up.

Josh thought about going after Tyler to introduce himself, and to ask for his name – because, boy, was he beautiful – but then the logical part of his brain told him that that would be really uncool and most likely creepy.

Josh couldn’t seem to get this boy out of his mind. Why was he so significant? What isolated him from the rest; what made him stand out? And… did he have a crush on this boy? Jeez, was he gay? Josh willed these thoughts out of his mind. He could _not_ be crushing on someone he’d only ever seen once, and for about two minutes. What the hell.

The second time Josh saw Tyler, he was seventeen and questioning. The tips of his longer hair had just been dyed hot pink, he had grown quite a bit, and his arms weren’t as thin and gangly as before. He was starting to look like an actual... boy-man?

Josh was on his phone as he walked into the building his locker was in, texting his friend because he had gotten there early, when he collided into someone else. He dropped his phone in shock, and stepped a couple of feet away to get a good look at whomever it was that he’d just bumped into.

His eyes grew wide as he looked into Tyler’s eyes. This was the dude – the guy it took half a second for him to almost fall in love with just two years ago. He never thought he would see him again. His phone was soon forgotten about as he lost the ability to talk or even move.

“Uh,” Tyler said nervously. He looked down at the ground and noticed the phone. He made eye contact with Josh before leaning down and picking it up.

“I guess this is yours,” he said, handing it over to Josh. He smiled apprehensively, before adding, “That was a really dumb question. Uh…”

Josh had suddenly regained the ability to act like a normal person, so he smiled and took the phone from Tyler. “Thanks. Sorry for bumping into you. I shouldn’t have been texting and walking.”

He wanted to punch himself for sounding so lame.

“It’s not your fault!” Tyler was quick to shout. He blushes a little before speaking again, softer this time. “I wasn’t looking where I was going. It’s my fault. Is your phone all right?” He bit his lip.

Josh looked at it for a second to make sure it wasn’t cracked or anything before looking back up and grinning at Tyler. “All good,” he said. “I’m Josh.”

“Tyler.”

Josh’s grin grew wider. Tyler. What a perfect name. “Hey, why haven’t I seen you around before?”

“I – uh, I’m a new student,” Tyler said. “Just to the school, though; not the town. I’ve been homeschooled all my life.”

“Oh,” Josh grimaced. “Why’d you switch from doing that to public school? You’ve only got, like, a couple of years left before graduation, right? You’re, what, sixteen? Seventeen?”

“Seventeen in three months,” Tyler replied. It was his turn to grimace. “And it wasn’t my decision. My mom seems to think I’m ‘antisocial’, or whatever, so…”

“Well, you’re not exactly antisocial. From what I can tell, anyway. You’re having this conversation with me right now, aren’t you?” Josh forced himself to refrain from adding a wink at the end.

Tyler let out a smile.

The bell rang before either boy could say another word. Josh looked at the clock on his phone in confusion. Had thirty minutes really gone by that fast?

Josh turned to say goodbye to Tyler, but he saw that Tyler was no longer looking at him, but staring at his schedule in confusion. Josh smiled. “Need help?” he asked knowingly.

Tyler looked up and smiled a little. “Yeah. Ms. Conner’s room?”

“Oh, for Chemistry? I had her last year. She’s really cool. She’s in the building next to this one, in the classroom on the very right when you first walk in,” Josh grinned.

“Thanks,” Tyler said. He hesitated before speaking again. “It was… really nice to meet you.”

Josh’s heart did something weird, then. He forced down the blush he could feel beginning to color his cheeks. “Nice to meet you, too, dude.”

Josh turned away from Tyler and started his journey to his first period class, before remembering that he needed to go to his locker. He got his locker open and quickly shoved his face inside before anyone could see his blush.

“I’m definitely gay,” he muttered.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tyler gets invited to his first high school party.

Josh and Tyler don’t become friends right away.

Sure, they text sometimes, and always exchange greetings whenever they see each other, but they just aren’t… friends.

Tyler doesn’t even know how to make a friend. He’s been here for months and nothing has happened. People barely even look at him. Not that he’s complaining, but.

It just kind of sucks.

Basketball season begins soon, which Tyler is thankful for, because he’s been practicing, and _maybe_ he’ll find someone on the team to become friends with.

He doesn’t see Josh around much. The two don’t have classes together, nor lunch, which sucks, because Tyler really likes him.

He really likes him.

Tyler had come to terms with the fact that he might be gay when he was twelve years old. He told his mom, and she looked at him with bright eyes – almost _knowing_ eyes, if he’s being honest – and told him that she would support his decision no matter what. That made Tyler happy, but he still doesn’t know if he’s actually gay, or if he just _thinks_ he is.

Either way, Josh has a really nice face. A face that Tyler likes to look at. Which sucks, because he knows Josh would never like a loser such as Tyler.

And, oh, he’s bumping into someone.

“What,” Tyler says intelligently as the books in his hands fall to the floor. He looks up to see who he’s bumped into, and, oh, it’s Josh.

Isn’t this getting to be a real problem.

Josh is laughing, though. Almost uncontrollably. Tyler tries to stare at him seriously, but he feels his lips twitch, and soon he’s laughing also.

“Man, this is just great,” Josh gives Tyler his signature grin, bending down to pick up Tyler’s books for him.

Tyler smiles, even though Josh can’t see it from his spot on the ground. “Yeah,” Tyler says shyly, and what the hell, it’s just Josh.

“I’m sorry, dude,” Tyler winces, “I’m super clumsy, and I don’t always look where I’m going, like, _ever,_ and – “

“Woah, hold up!” Josh exclaims, giving Tyler his books back and patting him on the shoulder. “Don’t worry about it, man. Actually, I wanted to talk to you.”

“What?”

“Yeah, uh, well… it’s Thanksgiving soon, right? And, uh, my buddy – his name is Brendon – always has this, like, pre-Thanksgiving party. His parents are, like, super Mormon, and they go to some kind of Mormon thing with their Mormon friends a couple of days before Thanksgiving, so Brendon has, like, a huge party every year. I was just wondering if you’d like to come…”

“What?”

“Uh…”

“No,” Tyler blushes. “No, I didn’t mean ‘what’, I mean, like… you’re inviting me to a party, what? Like, I’m going to a party. Like, my first high school party. Wow. And you want me to come?”

Josh nods.

“What?”

Josh chuckles. “Uh, I understand if you don’t want to come. I know I kind of just threw it on you, and, I don’t know, you might be busy…”

“That’s funny,” Tyler grins. “I had no plans over Thanksgiving break. I was actually just going to spend a couple of days in the woods, yelling out to see if anyone could hear me.”

“You’re funny,” Josh grins.

“You think I’m joking.”

Josh clears his throat. “Well, think about coming, okay? Cause… I really want you there. And I want you to meet Brendon. He’s a super cool dude, I promise.”

“Alright,” Tyler can feel himself smiling. “Thanks. Dude.”

Josh walks away, feeling proud of himself for getting through that strange conversation, and Tyler’s smile grows. He’s just been invited to his first high school party, and also he’s made a fool of himself for the second time in front of his crush.

“Yay,” he says to himself weakly.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I really don't even know.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “That was actually really sappy. I’m sorry,” Josh laughs.
> 
> “No,” Tyler says, feeling a smile tugging at his lips. “It was cute.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We're just going to pretend that it's been about a month and a half since the last chapter, so what happens in this upcoming chapter doesn't seem too rushed, okay? :)

“I put my socks on my feet,” Tyler half-sings half-mumbles to himself as he sits on a bench outside of the locker room after a morning practice, putting on a fresh pair of socks and tying his shoes.

“Hey, you,” he hears someone say from behind him. “What’s that you’re singing?”

“Oh,” Tyler blushes. “Nothing. Just something I came up with. But hi, Josh. What are you doing here so early for? It’s, like, seven in the morning.”

“I sometimes get here early,” he sees Josh shrug in a nonchalant kind of way, but it seems too forced. “I just like getting out of the house.”

Tyler frowns a little bit. If he could stay in his house all day, he totally would. It might be because of the fact that he’d spent the last sixteen years of his life in his house, never really leaving unless his mom forced him to run errands with her or if he were to occasionally walk around his backyard, inevitably wandering into the woods and spending hours staring at trees and screaming at the top of his lungs, where no one could hear him.

“Okay,” Tyler nods.

The two boys look at each other in silence, not knowing what to say. It’s been months since they met and became friends, and they haven’t yet gotten to the point where they’re comfortable just sitting in silence, so it’s kind of super awkward. Naturally.

“Be my boyfriend,” Josh suddenly says.

Tyler blinks. “What.”

“Crap,” Josh says. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to make you uncomfortable. Man, I’m so-“

“Woah, dude,” Tyler holds his hands up in surprise, dropping his gym bag in the process. “Uh, rambling, thought that was my thing.”

Josh laughs nervously and looks at his feet. “Forget I said anything.”

“Doubt it,” Tyler says. Josh’s head snaps up. “You never even gave me a chance to answer.”

“Uh,” Josh stutters.

“Yes,” Tyler says, looking into Josh’s eyes. He doesn’t even know how he manages to do that, because he sort of has a thing against staring directly into someone’s eyes. He can’t even look his dog in the eye without getting nervous.

“I like you,” Tyler says, scratching the back of his neck. “I’ve known this since we met,” he admits. “You’re just… you, a-and, I mean, how could I not? You’ve got this smile…” He trails off, gesturing wildly to Josh’s face with his hands.

“Yeah, you have a smile, too.” Josh grins, but then he frowns. “You don’t use it much. But, when you do, I find myself liking you even more.”

Tyler blushes.

“That was actually really sappy. I’m sorry,” Josh laughs.

“No,” Tyler says, feeling a smile tugging at his lips. “It was cute.”

Josh doesn’t say anything, but his rosy cheeks tell Tyler enough. “Your cheeks are turning pink,” he points out. Josh’s hands slap to his face, and they turn even redder.

“It’s cute,” Tyler says without thinking.

“Thanks,” Josh says self-consciously.

“Wait, so are we dating?” Tyler asks kind of bluntly.

“Well, I asked you, and you said yes, so yes.”

“Cool.”

“Am I your first boyfriend?”

“Yeah. Well, first relationship, actually. I… didn’t know I was gay,” Tyler admits, squinting his eyes. He doesn’t understand why he was so quick to accept Josh when he only ever had the suspicion that he likes boys.

“Woah, really?” Josh’s eyes widen.

“I – I mean, like, I _thought_ I was gay, well, _bi_ , I guess, ‘cause I guess I’ve always been into girls, but it wasn’t, like… I don’t know?”

Josh laughs. “Good to know. I just want to make sure I’m not pressuring you.”

“No, no, you weren’t! Aren’t! You – you aren’t.” Tyler laughs a little.

“So, do you wanna walk around school now? I’d kind of like to show off my gorgeous boyfriend.”

Tyler bites his lip. “Okay, I guess.”

And, basically, everyone at school fell in love with their relationship and all the teenage girls yelled “goals!” as they walked by.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You will find that I didn't include the whole Thanksgiving party-thing, on purpose, because I'm trash and I didn't know how to throw in all these new characters (Fall Out Boy, the old Panic! at the Disco, My Chemical Romance, and Gabe from Cobra Starship), but they will be in the next chapters! Hopefully.


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> So, basically, Tyler has tons of new friends and he doesn’t know what to make of this.

“Hey,” Tyler greets Josh with a smile as he sits down at their lunch table. It’s weird, being able to look at Josh every day and think to himself that he is his boyfriend, and it’s also weird to call the lunch table he sits at _their_ lunch table.

Tyler has tons of friends now, and the whole thing is weird in general, but it’s also pretty great.

Pete and his boyfriend, Patrick, who’s sort of shy but actually a decent guy once you get past the fact that he is with _Pete_ , are already sitting down together, as well as Brendon and Ryan. Brendon’s full of wild energy and he’s made of puppies and sunshine, and Ryan is about the complete opposite, but they’re obviously meant for each other. They just don’t know it yet.

The six of them sit together at lunch along with Gerard and his brother, Mikey. Mikey barely talks, unless it’s to Gerard or Ryan, and Gerard never smiles, unless it’s at Mikey. Those two are weird, but Tyler knows he is too, so it’s okay.

Tyler’s also friends with Frank, Gerard’s best friend and possible boyfriend – Tyler has decided that it really isn’t any of his business, so he hasn’t asked Gerard or Frank about it – and Gabe, who’s a freaky dude but friends with everyone. Andy and Joe also talk to Tyler occasionally, but they’re always off doing God knows what together. The four of them don’t share lunch with Tyler and Josh.

So, basically, Tyler has tons of new friends and he doesn’t know what to make of this. They’re all amazing people, but he can’t help but think about how they were originally friends with _Josh_ , and he’s just kind of jumped in like the complete outsider he is. He pushes these thoughts away, though, and decides to enjoy his lunchtime with his boyfriend.

“You were really quiet at lunch today,” Josh comments as the two boys walk from Tyler’s bus stop to his house. They always hang out together after school. Usually at Tyler’s place, because his mom is super friendly and always makes oatmeal raisin cookies, which Tyler thinks are gross but Josh loves. “You were quiet all day. Is something up?”

“Not really,” Tyler tries to appear nonchalant, but he knows Josh can see right through it. Josh just stares at him, waiting for him to say what’s up.

“Okay, like, it’s not really a big deal, but you know me, you know how I like to overthink things and kind of create problems for myself, so I was just, like, observing the lunch table and looking from Pete to Patrick to Brendon to Ryan to Mikey to Gerard to  _you_ , and I just thought to myself, like, these aren’t _my_ friends, these are _yours_ , and what if they don’t even like me, right, like what if they just _put up with me_ because of _you_ , and I really just don’t think that I – “

“God, Tyler, calm down!” Josh cries, because Tyler has stopped walking and he also isn’t breathing. “Calm down, Tyler, jeez, calm down.” Josh pulls his boyfriend into a hug, squeezing a little too tight, and rubbing his back, because he knows it comforts Tyler.

“I’m sorry,” Tyler sort of wheezes, and pulls himself out of Josh’s arms. “I’m stupid.”

“No, you aren’t. At all. I get it, okay? You’re scared of rejection, yeah, I understand. But these guys, they’re my friends, okay? They’re gonna accept _anyone_ I hang out with, and they _like_ you, alright? They totally like you. I think Pete’s even in love with you, sort of,” Josh chuckles, trying to lighten the mood.

Tyler nods once, then twice, then he rubs his eyes. “Yeah, sorry, I was being dumb. I _know_ all of this, it’s just – “

“It’s just _you_ ,” Josh says, grabbing hold of Tyler’s right hand and squeezing it. “And I accept it. It’s just another part of you that I love.”

Tyler nods again and he blinks. “Right. Uh. Love.”

“Sure. Let’s get to your house, okay? I can practically smell those cookies, and your mom is fricking awesome at baking.” Tyler smiles, and the two make the short walk to Tyler’s house.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Tyler has friends now, yay!
> 
> Also, Josh loves oatmeal raisin cookies because I love oatmeal raisin cookies. It has been decided.
> 
> I hope you enjoyed.


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> But, of course, nothing can go right for more than moments at a time in Tyler’s life. Which is why it’s Monday, and he’s lying in the parking lot of Target right next to his car, struggling blindly for his phone, which he knows he dropped but can’t seem to find.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't even know. I'm really sorry.
> 
> I suck.

Months have passed since Tyler and Josh met, and started dating. Dating never became an easier term for Tyler to say, but he loves it. He loves every minute of dating Josh. He thinks he loves Josh.

It’s spring break, now, and there’s a whole week off from school. Tyler is pleased by this, even though Josh is going to be in South Carolina visiting some family members for half the week. Tyler knows he’ll find something to do, though.

But, of course, nothing can go right for more than moments at a time in Tyler’s life. Which is why it’s Monday, and he’s lying in the parking lot of Target right next to his car, struggling blindly for his phone, which he knows he dropped but can’t seem to find.

He feels pain, and nausea, which he thinks is probably the result of being punched in the stomach a few times. Once he finds his phone, he’s calling Josh, even though the older boy is hundreds of miles away and it’d make more sense to just call his mother who’s only down the street.

“Hey, Tyler!” Josh says.

“Josh, I – I screwed up. I need you to help me. It hurts, Josh…” Tyler isn’t exactly sure what he’s saying, but he knows he’s rambling.

“Tyler, what?! What’s going on?” Josh is beginning to freak out, because he knows something has to be seriously wrong for Tyler to be calling him. Tyler almost never asks for help. And Josh can hear pain in Tyler’s voice.

“I don’t even know who did it. He just came out of nowhere and started… hitting me,” Tyler is trying to calm himself down, but it’s hard, and he can feel everything begin to fade.

“Wait, hitting you, someone hit you?” Josh flails. “U-uh, Tyler, hold on, I’m gonna hang up for a minute, I need to call your mom, okay, Tyler?”

Tyler can feel himself vaguely nod, even though he knows Josh can’t see it, but he can’t say anything to let Josh know he understands because the edges have just started to turn black and he’s almost gone.

He wakes up and finds himself in his room, which is weird, because it seems like just five seconds ago he was lying on asphalt.

“Tyler?” he can hear someone whisper, and he looks to the right to see Josh sitting at his desk.

“Josh,” Tyler croaks, “what are you doing here?”

Josh gives him a small smile and says, “I made my family leave South Carolina a day early to make sure you were okay. Do you remember what happened?”

“Yeah,” Tyler states, but it comes out like a question. “I was getting orange juice and eggs for my mother, and, I don’t know, some guy just came up and started pounding on me. And he…” Tyler hesitates. He doesn’t want Josh to know what the guy said to him.

“He what? Tyler, what did he do.”

“He called me a fag,” Tyler says, and Josh’s face crumbles. Tyler closes his eyes because he doesn’t want to see anymore.

“Is that why he beat you up?” Josh asks softly. Tyler shrugs then nods. Josh swears. Tyler’s never heard him swear before.

“We’re gonna fix this, okay? We are, we are,” Tyler can hear Josh saying, along with a few other mumbled words, but he can’t make them out because Josh’s face is pressed in Tyler’s shirt, and Tyler finds himself falling asleep again.


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Are you two fighting?” Tyler asks, squinting his eyes.
> 
> “No,” Josh says stupidly. Tyler’s mom just looks guilty.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I dunno. Sort of a filler chapter. Enjoy!
> 
> I hope everyone had a Happy Thanksgiving, as well.

Tyler enters his kitchen, hearing familiar voices, but he can’t figure out who they are. The voices seem to be arguing about something in hushed nervousness.

“Tyler,” someone says, and Tyler finds that one of the voices is Josh. Tyler looks next to Josh and sees his mom.

“Are you two fighting?” Tyler asks, squinting his eyes.

“No,” Josh says stupidly. Tyler’s mom just looks guilty.

“We were just talking about what to do, you know, about this whole situation,” Tyler’s mother says, frowning a little.

“And you didn’t think to include me?” Tyler isn’t angry, but he feels sort of left out, and he wants to know what’s going on.

“I think we should go to the police about this. Before your injuries heal. Tyler, don’t argue with me. Whoever’s done this will not back down unless some sort of authoritative figure is brought into it. Your mom, however,” Josh gestures to Tyler’s mom, “thinks we should leave it alone.”

“What do you think, honey?” Tyler’s mom asks in that always-worried tone of hers.

“I think…” Tyler says. “Maybe Josh is right. I mean, we can’t just leave this alone. Mom, I don’t know who did this, and I don’t want him to target Josh next or something. I think we should bring the police into this.”

“If you’re sure.”

“I am,” Tyler nods. “But. Can we just forget about it for now? There’s only a couple days of break left, and I sort of want to spend them with my boyfriend.” Tyler sees his mom nod, so he grabs Josh’s arm and drags him outside.

“Uh?” Josh questions. Both boys are barefoot, besides the socks they’re wearing, and it’s actually a little chilly outside, despite the fact that it’s April.

“Sorry, that was just too much,” Tyler scrubs at his face with a hand.

“It’s okay,” Josh pulls Tyler’s free hand into his and interlocks their fingers.

“Why were you so sure of this,” Tyler turns to Josh. “You were so… like, _certain_ about going to the police. Why?”

Josh sighs and looks down. “Okay, the same sort of thing happened to me. But it was a long time ago, and it only happened a couple of times. The first time, I didn’t go to anyone, except my mom. And she didn’t know what to do. So we both just decided that it would blow over. Then, a couple weeks later, it happened again. I finally got the hint that it wasn’t just gonna _end_. So I told the guidance counselor. The kid got expelled. It was in, like, seventh grade.”

Tyler sucks in a breath. “You never told me.”

“It wasn’t a big deal,” Josh says sheepishly. “I’m just gonna warn you, this will be sort of hard. It was probably someone at school, is my guess. Have you made any enemies or anything?” It’s almost impossible for anyone to hate Tyler, Josh thinks, but it’s worth a shot.

“N – no,” Tyler says, eyes wide. “I barely talk to anyone at school, except for you and your friends – m – my friends. And the guys I play basketball with. And my coach. And my teachers. But that’s it.”

“I figured. Ugh, I don’t know,” Josh frowns. “It could be someone in one of your classes. No offense, but a lot of people at school don’t even know you exist.”

“Why would anyone want to beat me up, though? That’s what I want to know. I thought people were… _okay_ with our relationship. No one ever seemed disgusted when we’d walk by them or anything.”

Josh looks at Tyler, whose face is really conflicted and seems to be crumbling more and more by the second.

“Hey,” Josh pulls his boyfriend in a hug, stroking his hair a couple of times. Tyler’s shaking but he doesn’t say anything, afraid that his voice will crack.

“We’ll figure out who did this, and I’ll make sure they never do it again. You’re gonna be okay,” Josh can feel Tyler’s heartbeat slow down, and he pulls away from the hug.

“Thanks,” Tyler mutters. It’s not exactly comfortable or pleasant to cry into your boyfriend’s shoulder, so he holds back the tears. If Josh could get through this more than once, and he was younger when it happened, then Tyler could get through this.


	7. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “If you say you’re fine, then you’re either fine, or you don’t want to tell us. And that’s okay. You don’t have to. If you aren’t fine, tell Josh, at least. Everyone at this school knows he loves you more than he loves his own mom.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Everything I've been writing lately is complete shit, but I had to get this out for you guys, since it's been two weeks since I last updated this story. Sorry. I'm trying to figure everything out. But I hope you enjoy this short chapter.

“So, are you okay?”

Everyone at the table stops talking. Eyes turn to Tyler, who finds himself looking down at his tray.

“I’m fine.”

“Tyler, you can be honest with us,” Mikey asks. Everyone turns to Mikey. He barely ever talks. When he does, it’s almost always to his older brother, and never above a whisper.

“I _am_ being honest. We handled it. The kid got suspended, or whatever. I don’t even care. Can we forget about it?” Tyler raises his voice. Mikey flinches.

“Sorry, Mikey,” Tyler says. Mikey shrugs.

“Tyler’s right,” Pete says. He averts his eyes from his boyfriend and sets his gaze on Tyler. “If you say you’re fine, then you’re either fine or you don’t want to tell us. And that’s okay. You don’t have to. If you aren’t fine, at least tell Josh. Everyone at this fucking school knows he loves you more than he loves his own mom.” Pete rolls his eyes a little, but it’s in a fond way.

Tyler can feel his cheeks turning red. Thank God Josh isn’t here to hear this right now. Pete’s known for stretching the truth at times, but Tyler still can’t help but wonder if he’s right.

“Y – you think so?” Tyler asks.

“Duh,” Brendon says, laughing. “Dude, everyone knows it, except for you and Josh. Just catch him staring at you once, and you’ll be able to see the hearts in his eyes.”

Everyone at the table laughs a little, even though it really wasn’t that funny. Nothing Brendon usually says _is_. They’re just trying to break through the tension, and Tyler’s grateful for that.

“ _Really_ , guys, I’m fine. Thank you for the concern, even though it isn’t needed. It’s… it’s appreciated,” Tyler smiles a little. He just wants everything to go back to normal.


	8. Chapter 8

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tyler never wants to let go of this day, or Josh, ever.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm actually cringing. I'm terrible at ending stories, which I think is why I mostly do one-shots. This is the ending, though.
> 
> I'm astounded at how many people have read this. I have 70-something kudos on this story, which is actually ridiculous, considering I'm not proud of this story at all. I always start out with super cool ideas and then they get run down by the end because I get lazy and/or writer block hits me.
> 
> But thank you for your continued support, and I hope you sort of enjoyed this! :)

Tyler and Josh are lying on the couch in Josh’s living room, watching some movie that neither one of them are paying attention to. It’s Saturday afternoon, and Josh wanted to do something with Tyler.

Well, what he really wanted was an excuse to not do his homework, but those moments that Josh gets to spend with his boyfriend are perfect and they don’t happen as often as he’d like.

Halfway through the movie, Tyler realizes that Josh is asleep, and he switches from staring at him to staring blankly at the television screen.

Tyler can hear Josh’s short, even breaths as he dreams, and he smiles. Leaning forward, he kisses his sleeping boyfriend on the cheek.

Josh stirs and slowly opens his eyes.

“I’m sorry,” Tyler half-whispers. “I didn’t mean to wake you up.”

Josh looks at Tyler and smiles sleepily. “It’s okay. It was a great way to wake up.”

Josh stretches and yawns, then sits up. “Do you want something to eat? Lunchtime was an hour ago. You hungry?”

“Uh, sure,” Tyler says, taking it upon himself to fix his boyfriend’s bedhead. It’s cute, Tyler admits, but he’s a total neat freak.

“I’ll make us sandwiches,” Josh says, leaning over to kiss Tyler on the cheek before standing up and walking to the kitchen.

Tyler sighs contently and lies back, closing his eyes. This moment is perfect. He’s genuinely happy, which is something he’d been worried that he would never be since he was young. Tyler never wants to let go of this day, or Josh, ever.


End file.
